"Be strong and unyielding, this is your household and you must look after everyone."

They met in their hometown of Gulcha in their early 20's and fell in love. They have 5 sons, all of whom have married. They speak Uzbek in their own home, because of their community, but speak Kyrgyz when relatives from the region of Alai visit, or when they are in the city.

Batma (57) is ethnic Uzbek and works at the local hospital.

Batyr (60) is ethnic Kyrgyz and is retired, although he spent his earlier years as a commercial trucker in southern Tajikistan.

"We have had children and educated them. We have water. We have food. We have jobs. We have a home. We have everything we need. This makes us happy."

They married in 1972, after Abdirazak met her at medical school and kidnapped her. They now have five children who all live in Russia, practicing medicine and law.

After the June events, interethnic marriages stopped and tension existed. Mister Baimaziev, the leader of district at the time, placed police on every corner to ensure that nothing would happen. In August 2010, they chose to host a large wedding for their daughter who was marrying an Uzbek man. The marriage was huge and they played equal Kyrgyz and Uzbek songs, in addition to splitting groomsmen roles. Traditionally there are 12 groomsmen, representing the 12 parts a lamb is divided into. For this wedding there were 6 Kyrgyz and 6 Uzbek men. They filled the road with tables and had a huge ceremony.

Inavat (60) is ethnic Uzbek and serves as deputy of the local Ail Kenesh or local government, after working 28 years as a medical assistant.

"How many children do we want? Many boys and many girls, a football team and a volleyball team. We're okay for now. It's a lot of work."

They have three children and have been married for 10 years. They studied mathematics together at the Ala Buka University for 6 years.

Nurali's family was initially upset by the marriage, not because of ethnicity, but because he married before his two older brothers. His father is Yigitali and gave all of his sons freedom in choosing their wives. His sister married an Uzbek and lives in Osh. His other brothers have married Russians and Tartars, and his sister an Uzbek.

Matluba (32) is ethnic Kyrgyz and works as a teacher.

Nurali (32) is ethnic Tajik, although his ethnicity is legally Uzbek because his great grandfather wanted to integrate. He originally worked as a math teacher, but now works as a driver.

"During the USSR Soviet Period, there were no nationalities. In our family there is no difference."

Meravat was classmates with one of Ulukbek's brothers. After meeting in Russia, they fell in love. They married in 1988 and lived in Russia, Bishkek and Jalalabad before moving to Osh. Their two daughters work in Russia. They primarily speak Russian at home.

Meravat is ethnic Uzbek and teaches foreign languages. She is fluent in Russian, Kyrgyz, Uzbek, Hindi and German.

Ulukbek is ethnic Kyrgyz and works as a lawyer. He has five brothers and one sister.

They have been married for 35 years and have three daughters and one son. They met while working at the same electrical company, where Umsunai worked as a secretary and Kamaldin worked as a mounter. Kamaldin fell in love and kidnapped her with the help of his friends. She did not want to marry him and broke all of the windows in the house. Eventually, they had a large wedding with lots of friends. Kamaldin liked Umsunai's long hair and says that his "heart was attacked" when he saw her. She says, "Love does not feel any boundaries. He was handsome, and had black hair."

Both families come from pure blood (all Kyrgyz and all Uzbek). They chose to celebrate the wedding using Kyrgyz wedding translations.

Umsunai (54) is ethnic Kyrgyz and has served as a school director the past 12 years and on the local parliament for the past two years.

Kamaldin (60) is ethnic Uzbek and has worked as a mounter at an electrical company for the past 37 years.